Transvaal T.S.O.
I saw this on a Kenny Napier Auction this morning. Get on his Mailing List!
This item makes the very interesting and quite plausible suggestion that 'TSO' may be an abbreviation for 'Temporary Sub-Office'.
That is not a description of 'TSO' that we have considered. I think it is a strong contender - BUT that does not mean it is correct!
Plausible, but probably not right.
As the attached page from the Transvaal PMG's Annual Report for 1906 shows, certain offices in Johannesburg are listed as Town Sub-Offices, the explanation offered some time ago by Chris Board.
The attached table is an attempt to bring together the available information. Fifteen offices are known with date-stamps which say "T.S.O" after the office name, thirteen in Johannesburg, one (Sunnyside) in Pretoria, and one in Potchefstroom. Eight other Johannesburg offices are listed as Town Sub-Offices in the 1906 report but date-stamps with "T.S.O" haven't been reported.
The earliest known TSO date-stamps date from 1903 (Bertrams and Commissioner Street East); several others date from 1904-5. All the offices with TSO date-stamps opened before 1910 according to Putzel's Encyclopedia, which suggests that the designation was not used by the Union Post Office.
I'm trying to gather information on these and other Transvaal date-stamps, and would be grateful for scans of anything that readers of this post think might be of interest.
Uploaded files:
Because you have done the research and have convinced me, because the impeccable Chris Board first suggested it, because it is confirmed by your 'Transvaal Administration Report', I concede that it is almost certain that 'TSO' stands for 'Town Sub-Offices'.
Jamie, I hope this answers your and David Morrison's question! Thanks to all who contributed, most notably Bas.